Many types of furniture, such as modular office furniture, include hanging storage units that are designed specifically to preserve floor and desk space. These storage units include bookshelves, file cabinets, file bins, and the like that typically hang from fixed walls or wall partitions and from standing pieces of furniture. Hanging storage units usually are supported by brackets mounted to the side panels of the storage units. These brackets interlock with a support structure in the wall or the standing furniture.
For many hanging storage units, the side panels or side supports are constructed from particleboard or plywood that is coated with a decorative paper or material, such as FORMICA, paint, or the like. As a result, the storage units are relatively heavy and, to many people, unattractive. The storage units also tend to develop unsightly defects over time, especially as the decorative material chips away, exposing the particleboard or plywood underneath.
Producing side supports for this type of storage unit is both labor and resource intensive. First the particle board or plywood is pre-sanded and processed to remove any surface defects. Then the particle board or plywood is processed to add adhesive for laminate or decorative skins. Some particle board products include paper skins built into the manufacturing of the raw material. In general, the fabrication processes for the large raw stock sheets include hours of high pressure press time to laminate and cure the raw sheet stock sizes. These raw sheet stock sizes vary approximately from 4'.times.8' and larger. The particle board or plywood is then cut to size for the smaller raw side panel support sizes. The smaller raw side panel supports are then drilled or routed to accommodate mounting brackets and other mounting components, such as mounting inserts, T-molding, or the like. Some manufacturers route edge shapes onto the side panels and use a lengthy process to paint the edges, which then must be allowed to dry. These applications involve high material costs and rely heavily on human labor, which further increases costs and reduces quality control in producing these types of supports.
In some modular office systems, side supports are formed from sheets of metal or from metal rods that are bent and then welded to form flat plates or hollow frames. In most cases, additional welding of other attaching components or other metal shapes is required to finish the fabricated side panel support. A coat of paint is then applied. The painting process for metal is extensive since the metal must undergo washing, drying, painting, and then baking to solidify the paint. This process is usually carried out in a large, expensive paint booth or tunnel.
Like particleboard or plywood supports, metal supports tend to develop unsightly blemishes as the paint chips and wears over time. Also, over time the mounting brackets tend to pull away from both plywood and metal supports under heavy loads, thus compromising the structural integrity of the supports.